Saturday, December 27, 2008

On January 16, 2008, the Library of Congress launched a pilot project on Flickr, the popular photosharing Web site. The public was invited to tag and describe two sets of approximately 3,000 historic photos at The Library of Congress’s photostream.

The Collections The News in the 1910sseries shows the daily news scene from almost a hundred years ago, as photographed by the Bain News Service in the years 1910-1912. The following image shows Herman A. “Germany” Schaefer of the Washington Senators baseball team trying out a camera during a game:

The 1930s-40s in Colorseries contain vivid color photos from the Great Depression and World War II. These photos capture an era generally seen only in black-and-white. Photographers working for the United States Farm Security Administration (FSA) and later the Office of War Information (OWI) created the images between 1939 and 1944. The following image shows a woman aircraft worker checking electrical assemblies for the Vega Aircraft Corporation in Burbank, California:

The World War I Panoramasseries contain long panoramic photos showing U. S. military personnel and camps, patriotic parades, and European battlefields and cemeteries related to World War I. The following image shows the the farewell parade in Indianapolis, Indiana March 28, 1918 for soldiers leaving for Europe:

The Public Reaction to the Collections The Library of Congress has received an enormous amount of positive feedback from within Flickr, from the traditional press, and from the Web 2.0 community at large. Public reaction to the pilot from a broad array of users made it clear that the existence of these freely available digital materials was a welcome surprise. As suspected, many people have long been unaware of the rich historical and cultural resources available through libraries.

Here are some interesting statistics that attest to the popularity and impact of the Flickr pilot project:

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10.4 million views of the photos on Flickr.

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79% of the 4,615 photos have been made a favorite —incorporated into personal Flickr collection.

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7,166 comments were left on 2,873 photos by 2,562 unique Flickr accounts.

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Less than 25 instances of user-generated content were removed as inappropriate.

Friday, December 26, 2008

The City of Redmond provides a set of downloadable maps that include information on city streets, public safety, and recreation. You can download the PDF-format maps from the City Maps Web page. Here are some of the maps in the collection.

Redmond Street MapThis Public Works Department map shows the streets of Redmond, and is updated as needed. Here’s a portion of the map showing the Grass Lawn neighborhood. Notice that the property boundaries are marked:

Fire Response Area Map The Redmond Fire Department provides a map that shows the fire response areas for each of the city’s Fire Stations. Here’s a portion of the map showing the fire response area for Fire Station 11:

Redmond Watershed Preserve Map The Redmond Parks Department provides a map showing the network of trails in Farrel-McWhirter Park and the Watershed Preserve. Here’s a portion of the map showing the Novelty Hill Road entrance to the Watershed Preserve.

Wednesday, December 24, 2008

3 Days, 3 Ways, Are You Ready? is a public awareness campaign that helps families and communities prepare for emergencies and disasters. 3 Days — that’s the minimum number of days you should be ready to survive on your own following a disaster. 3 Ways — that’s the number of steps you need to follow to be prepared:

The 3Days3Ways Web site provides a wealth of resources on disaster and emergency planning, specifically targeted for residents of Washington state.

Emergency Resource Guide The 2008 version of the Washington State Emergency Resource Guide is available for download in both English and Spanish. This 48-page guide provides practical advice for preparing your household for emergencies, such as learning how to shut off your water, gas, and electricity. The guide is also available in print at no cost from the Washington State Printer’s General Store Web site. Click here for more info.

Redmond Emergency InfoFor up-to-date info on winter storms and other emergencies, check the City of Redmond’s Emergency Web page.

Sunday, December 21, 2008

The new $5 bill entered circulation this year. Explore the Bureau of Engraving and Printing's 5$ Interactive Bill content to find out how this bill has been redesigned to help foil counterfeiters.

About the Redesigned CurrencyIn order to stay ahead of counterfeiting, the United States government continues to redesign our paper money. A new $5 bill was issued on March 13, 2008. It will be followed by a new $100 bill. Redesigned $10, $20 and $50 bills are already in circulation.

The redesigned $5 bill retains two of the most important security features that were first introduced in the 1990s and are easy to check.

There are now two watermarks on the redesigned $5 bill. A large number "5" watermark is located to the right of the portrait of President Lincoln. A second watermark — a column of three smaller "5"s — has been added to the new $5 bill design and is positioned to the left of the portrait. Hold your bill up to the light and look for the two new watermarks.

The embedded security thread appears to the right of the President Lincoln portrait on the redesigned $5 bill. The letters "USA" followed by the number "5" in an alternating pattern are visible along the thread from both sides of the bill.

The embedded security thread glows blue when held under ultraviolet light. Hold your bill up to the light and look for the embedded security thread. For more info on the redesigned $5 bill, see About the the New 5$ Bill.

The following video shows the new $5 bill being printed by the Bureau of Engraving and Printing:

The public can buy uncut sheets of $5 bills and other denominations directly from the Bureau of Engraving and Printing. This is real money. For more info, see Uncut Currency.

ResourcesThe Digital Resources page on the Bureau of Engraving and Printing Web site provides downloadable materials available to the public, including podcasts, screensavers, and desktop wallpaper. Visit The Bureau of Engraving and Printing for more info on U.S. banknotes and how they are made.

Saturday, December 20, 2008

Take a 360° virtual helicopter flight along the rim of the Mount St. Helens volcano and over Spirit Lake. Or maybe you'd rather fly over the blast zone. Better yet, how about flying into the crater of an active volcano. These three 2-minute interactive videos are available from the Teacher’s Corner of the Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument, courtesy of the US Forest Service.

Once the video is playing, you can change the viewing perspective of the helicopter flight. Click and hold the left mouse button, then drag left, right, up or down. To keep the new view, lift the mouse button.

Saturday, December 13, 2008

Elisha Kent Kane, scion of a wealthy and influential Philadelphia family, became a legend of 19th-century America. Before he was 30, he had descended into a volcano in the Philippines, infiltrated a company of slave traders in West Africa, and narrowly survived hand-to-hand combat in the Sierra Madre while carrying a secret message from the president of the United States.

Yet Kane would achieve his greatest fame by exploring the High Arctic, an adventure that began when he sailed in search of the lost expedition of Sir John Franklin and the open water of an alleged “polar sea” around the North Pole. In the mid-1850s, Kane pushed farther north than any other voyager, then spent two years trapped in the ice before leading a desperate but heroic retreat that only added to his legend.

Race to the Polar Sea by Ken McGoogan tells the story of a romantic adventurer driven by dreams of glory. It is a tale of heroism, courage and conspiracy that evokes an age when the Arctic seemed a white, booming emptiness, beautiful and unknowable.

The Polar Sea In 1853, Kane wintered over in Rensselaer Bay, Greenland, which is east of Nunavut, Canada, and north of Baffin Bay.

Baffin Bay (French: Baie de Baffin) is a sea between the Atlantic and Arctic oceans. It is 1130 km (700 mi) across from north to south. It is not navigable most of the year because of the presence of large numbers of icebergs.

About the Author Ken McGoogan Born in Montreal and raised in a small French-speaking town, Ken has lived all over Canada — Quebec, Ontario, British Columbia, Alberta, New Brunswick, and the Yukon — as well as in California, Greece, and Tanzania. In his twenties, Ken worked as a bicycle messenger in San Francisco, a forest fire lookout in the Canadian Rockies, and a French teacher in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Later, he visited the High Arctic, explored Europe and the United States, and rambled around Kenya, Malaysia, Singapore, Australia, India and Sri Lanka.

Along the way, Ken attended universities in Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver, earning a bachelor’s degree in journalism (Ryerson) and a master’s degree in creative writing (University of British Columbia). He worked as a journalist at The Toronto Star and The Montreal Star, and spent more than a decade as books editor and columnist at The Calgary Herald.

Wednesday, December 10, 2008

The Suzzallo Library is the central library of the University of Washington in Seattle, and perhaps the most recognizable building on campus. It is named for Henry Suzzallo, who was president of the University of Washington until he stepped down in 1926, the same year the first phase of the library's construction was completed. The library is open to the general public and is a great place to explore.

The library was built in the Collegiate Gothic style, which was part of the Gothic Revival architectural movement, hugely popular in the United States. Interestingly, the number of Gothic Revival structures built in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries exceeds the number of authentic Gothic structures that had been built during the Middle Ages.

The following image shows the Suzallo Library at the eastern end of Central Plaza, better known as Red Square:

Graduate Reading Room A climb up the grand marble staircase takes you to the third floor, where you can find the Graduate Reading Room. This room takes up the entire third floor of this section of the library. It is 250 feet in length and 65 feet in height, with Tudor style arches spanning the sides. Lighting is provided by 22 chandeliers and 36 foot high stained glass windows. Cork floors muffle the sound of footsteps. Oak bookcases are topped with hand-carved friezes, representing native flora of Washington State. This is a delightful place to sit for a while.

The Graduate Reading Room’s distinctive look, reminiscent of the great halls of Oxford and Cambridge colleges, is said to have been inspired by Henry Suzzallo's belief that universities should be "cathedrals of learning."

Saturday, December 6, 2008

The re-opening of the Redmond Library, originally scheduled for December 15th, has been delayed until the first week of January. During the Redmond Library’s closure, the Kirkland Library has expanded its Sunday hours and now stays open until 8:00 PM.

Limited services will be available in the Redmond Library’s meeting room, including holds, pick-ups, a small reference collection, and some computers during the following hours:

Monday-Thursday

10 a.m.-9 p.m.

Friday

10 a.m.-6 p.m.

Saturday

10 a.m.-5 p.m.

Sunday

1-5 p.m.

Automated Book ReturnThe automated book returns will remain open and will be checked daily.